Recovery for Andover, North Andover and Lawrence Will Take Time and Money

Not only were people displaced this weekend, but the first responders were, as they always are, ready to extinguish the multiple fires that took place last Thursday.  Just look at this map on the Mass State Police Twitter page:

This past weekend, I was able to go shopping for mums for my deck and my front yard, as I do at this time every year.  I was also able to cook in my own kitchen, with some of my Mother's and Grandmother's dishes.  Just down the road a piece, some of my family and friends, lost EVERYTHING in the fires in Andover, North Andover and Lawrence.

When you lose your home to a fire, nothing is the same.  It's one of the events in life that you use as a marker.  ("This happened before the fire...." or "This happened after the fire...")  When I was 9 years old, my family had an electrical fire and it displaced my Mother, sisters and the family dog, right after my Dad died.  It's not a fun experience.  I was sent to a neighbors house that I didn't know and was scared to death that I wouldn't ever be in my house again.  We were lucky and we didn't have to move, but these families do.  My heart goes out to them.